What are food deserts? Food deserts are areas with limited access to healthy, nutritious foods. The distance to grocery stores that sell healthy, nutritious foods is a factor that influences this.
The county-based map below shows no supermarket within a mile and no car to get you to the supermarket that’s far away.
What Is Food Insecurity?
Food Insecurity goes hand in hand with a food desert. It’s defined as not having access to sufficient food or adequate quality to meet someone’s basic needs.
The map below points out food insecurity based on state. All of the darker orange states are higher than the national average. That means many people are NOT getting sufficient nutrients in these states.
Processed Foods
What are those eating in these food deserts that do not have access to healthy, nutritious foods? Processed foods.
Processed food is defined as no longer in its natural state. Think cereal, Hamburger Helper, lunch meats, Lunchables, etc.
Food Deserts And Their Economy
So the supply of healthy, nutritious food in a food desert or food insecure states is super low. That means the cost is high.
The opposite is true for processed food. The supply is high, so the cost is really low. Many of these states with higher poverty rates also have less access to healthy foods.
One thing that helps offset the cost of living for people who live in poverty is SNAP benefits. Below is a state-based map for SNAP recipients. Look at all these states. They overlap so many times.
Food Deserts And Obesity
Let’s also think about what people have been taught about obesity. That people who are obese are somebody who eats too much.
Not only does food access contribute to a person’s size, but there are health conditions that cause people to be obese.
Epigenetics And Stress
Epigenetics is the final piece of the puzzle. It’s defined as the way your behaviors and the environment you live in can cause changes that affect the way your genes work. Epigenetics can lead to obesity, autoimmune diseases, cancers, etc.
Stress can also cause obesity. Poor people can be incredibly stressed all the time. They’re running in survival mode too often.
Stress releases cortisol. Cortisol can make us have cravings for our preferred comfort foods. And a lot of times, those comfort foods are not healthy.
But it doesn’t mean people should choose between having a stroke and eating a Little Debbie cake.